Our introduction to keeping chickens, the high's, the lows and pics of our journey.

[Bens-Hens]

The sound is very soft as it's a 'screener' but it should work.

"...at 5, Riley is one of the younger runners" "I like to run up the big hills"

Cooper was also in there but just looking handsome, yes after their mum!

Heading back to embed the original vid.

 

[Wrightsx4]

What a cutie! You are lucky to have such a beautiful location to run.
We put the real eggs under our broody hens on Wednesday afternoon the 28th so they should hatch around the 18th.
Oh, and for our hatch along I should let you know that Betty has taken over our broody hatch here. Fancy was only content in the broody pen for one night and part of the morning. She ended up back in the old nest box, but she won't return to the same box when she gets up, which is frequent since she willingly moves if another hen wants her spot. I kept finding her eggs getting cool while she sat on others. Betty is the opposite. She doesn't move unless lifted. I make sure she gets up daily but otherwise she's flattened over those eggs. She had a 100% hatch last summer with shook up shipped eggs. Good resume - she stole the job

 

[Bens-Hens]

Reliable Betty hey! Well, sorry to Fancy for not being a bit higher up the pecking order to hold her clutch. Betty does have a glowing resume so good luck to her.

Sal has been doing really well since we let her go back to her favourite nest. She gets off once a day for a frantic walk around, drink and nibble then back to the job. She is still with the main flock and still in an elevated nest. Not sure if we should just try move her and the eggs or maybe take them off her in the last day and hatch them in the incubator then give her back dried day olds in a nest we choose. Maybe we can leave her there until they hatch and then she might set up house in a lower nest.

We have about 2 weeks to see how we want to play it.

 

[Fancychooklady]

Ben mine often brood in an elevated nest box. I just check everyday and as soon as they start hatching I put a board across the front of the box . No one in no one out. Wait till every one has hatched and then relocate them to a smaller hutch. There they will stay until they are at least 3-4 weeks old, depending on the size of your rooster box you could wait till they are a few weeks old and put the whole thing back in the main pen.

 

[vehve]

Ben, your kid seems like a cool little dude.

Are the runs always timed? Because a lot of people where running too fast for themselves, or maybe the cameras just made them nervous. But technique is important, i saw a lot of future knee issues there.

 

[cwrite]

Poor Fancy! Oh well, for a 100% hatch rate on shipped eggs I could get over feeling sorry for her. Go Betty!

This makes me feel terribly lazy, but I thought you'd appreciate it:
http://www.runnersworld.com/general-interest/91-year-old-finishes-san-diego-marathon

I do one 5km charity race a year & my time is terrible. I'm thinking I could push myself a little harder.

 

[satay]

I was actually referring to names like Toowoomba, I love these Australian names for places. Sounds like a very fertile lady. "This is Toowoomba, she has thirty seven kids."

Maybe you should do some civil disobedience with a can of spray-paint... You could have them show their support for one of the largest organizations that are striving for world peace and human rights...

I think I'm trying too hard to be funny right now. I'm picturing anyone reading this with the same face that my better half makes when I'm laughing about the "hilarious" joke I've just made. Like on the phone the other night, she said "You'll just have to bear with me for a moment."  I kept making these "Groaaar" sounds during the rest of the call after that. I've come to the conclusion that I'm just a bit 'different' from everybody else.

That is funny. Hadn't thought of it like that it is not actually pronounced too woom ba but too womba... not sure that is the right way of spelling the pronunciation either anyways lol.

http://www.howjsay.com/index.php?word=toowoomba&submit=Submit
Now that's funny but should let you hear how it is said lol.

 

[vehve]

cwrite, I've found that once I decide that I'm out of shape, and start running more actively again, the first two or three weeks are the worst. After that it's only mildly horrible.

satay, add to that that a Brit, Yank and Ozzie probably all pronounce it differently. I mostly have an American resembling accent, but I'm very easily influenced by others. So after we had a Sherlock marathon with Karin (that's the better half) I sounded more like a Brit. Last Summer was a bit of a hassle, I worked at a place where half the employees were Indian. Had to watch my tongue very closely so that I didn't start to sound like Apu from the Simpsons.

Most Finns however have a very distinct Finnish accent. Here's an example:

Somehow it's very hard for Finns to shake this accent, I'm mainly Swedish speaking so I can just choose to use it, the Finnish doesn't influence my speaking as heavily.

 

[Bens-Hens]

Ben mine often brood in an elevated nest box. I just check everyday and as soon as they start hatching I put a board across the front of the box . No one in no one out. Wait till every one has hatched and then relocate them to a smaller hutch. There they will stay until they are at least 3-4 weeks old, depending on the size of your rooster box you could wait till they are a few weeks old and put the whole thing back in the main pen.

Well, that kind of make me feel better, might leave her up there as long as we can. However I have a Sal update.

I was peeking through the window and saw the two Rocks in there, then one grabbed her by the neck and dragged her off. I rushed in there and everyone fled. Looking in the nest I could only find 8 sticky eggs....there should be nine. I could find yolk, but not shell anywhere. Sal had been robbed of what I think was a silkie egg.

I started up the preset incubator, and pondered how I am going to deal with this. Alicia and I decided that maybe these Rocks need to be brought down a peg or two. We are going to leave Sal on her nest as she seems comfortable there. The eggs will stay with her and the two Rocks are getting relocated to the naughty coop tractor. There they will be separated from the flock during the day. We will let them out to range for longer than the rest of the flock, but Sal needs another two weeks of peace from them.

Things were going just too well.

Ben, your kid seems like a cool little dude.

Are the runs always timed? Because a lot of people where running too fast for themselves, or maybe the cameras just made them nervous. But technique is important, i saw a lot of future knee issues there.

Yeah, those runs are always timed. It's a fixed run of 5k, run all over the world on Saturday mornings. I don't know of that many regulars that have knee complaints, mostly calves I hear about. Lots of heel strike runners trying to convert to a better form of mid foot landing is hard on the 'baby cows' I used to be bad for a long stride. Pretty much fixed that now but it has taken a long time.

I am about the start a new program on Monday, will have me clock up nearly 1500 km (930 miles) in 16 weeks in preparation for a 80 km (50 mile) trail race. I am a bit nervous! WIll be my longest race so far.

Poor Fancy! Oh well, for a 100% hatch rate on shipped eggs I could get over feeling sorry for her. Go Betty!

This makes me feel terribly lazy, but I thought you'd appreciate it:
http://www.runnersworld.com/general-interest/91-year-old-finishes-san-diego-marathon

I do one 5km charity race a year & my time is terrible. I'm thinking I could push myself a little harder.

I did, thought I mentioned her the other day, but she had not yet run. Harriette Thompson ran her first marathon at 76!!!

cwrite, I've found that once I decide that I'm out of shape, and start running more actively again, the first two or three weeks are the worst. After that it's only mildly horrible.

satay, add to that that a Brit, Yank and Ozzie probably all pronounce it differently. I mostly have an American resembling accent, but I'm very easily influenced by others. So after we had a Sherlock marathon with Karin (that's the better half) I sounded more like a Brit. Last Summer was a bit of a hassle, I worked at a place where half the employees were Indian. Had to watch my tongue very closely so that I didn't start to sound like Apu from the Simpsons.

Most Finns however have a very distinct Finnish accent. Here's an example:

Somehow it's very hard for Finns to shake this accent, I'm mainly Swedish speaking so I can just choose to use it, the Finnish doesn't influence my speaking as heavily.

Good old "leave me alone I know what I'm doing" Kimme. What a character in the F1 world. The guy can steer thats for sure.

 

[Fancychooklady]

Oh what a shame . Oh well at this stage it's not much more than cells. Throw those bad ' rock sisters ' in the ' sin bin '.